Scissors.

Opunake Times, Volume I, Issue 29, 9 October 1894, Page 4

Scissors.

The Irish language is still spoken, to some extent, in the Bahamas by the descendants of the Hibernians banished to the West Indies by Cromwell.

The stomachic powers of the shark and the ostrich are considerable, but the codfish’s can match them. Inside a codfish caught off Flamborough was found a wooden doll six inches long, with a woollen dress. In another was found a pair of spectacles, quite whole and sound. A third codfish had a coral necklace in him. From the stomach of a fourth were taken fiftynine hooks, baited with whelks, but no snoods (strings) attached to them. The fish, perhaps, had digested the string, but needed more time for the fifty.nine hooks. The Austialasian says that a New Zealand correspondent vouches for the following : At a small township a man was brought up before two Justices for stealing a cheque from a station baud. It was proved that the prisoner had cashed the cheque and spent part of the proceeds at the local store, and the remainder at the public house. The Bench, after deliberating, pronounced as follows: “We find that the prisoner undoubtedly stole the cheque, but as he spent the money in the place we have decided to let him off with a' caution.” The freetrade cause is gaining ground everywhere. The Australasian says that tariff reform w r as the only issue involving principle put before the Victorian electors, and the results pan

out exceedingly well, as the prospector would say, when testing likely ground. y In the face of the difficulties besetting the contest, to have got in 42 members pledged to reduce duties, and 14 who admit that the tariff requires revision, leaving only 88 of the old protectionist school (and some of them are not as enthusiastic as they used to be) is an achievement to rejoice over. Chinese junks and boats have eyes carved or painted on their bows, which are usually supposed to be a mere fanciful form of ornamentation. But they have a real meaning, as a recent traveller found. In going up one of the rivers from Ningpo he was startled one day by seeing a boatman seize his broad hat and clap it over one of the eyes of the boat, -while other boats on the stream were similarly blinded. Looking about for an explanation, he saw T a dead body floating past, and he was told by the boatman that if the boat had been allowed to “ see ” it . some disaster would surely have happened either to passengers or crew before the voyage ended.